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Aloha spirit

When the family of Hawaii running back David Cordero planned a tailgate in the UA mall Saturday afternoon, there was no point in assembling an invitation list.

Cordero’s father, also named David, simply spread the news on social media and let it take off … to Hawaii fans in Colorado, California, Nevada and even some on the East Coast who flew in for the tailgate and Saturday’s UA-UH game.

“People from the islands, you make roots, and they go deep because it’s like family,� said the elder Cordero, a Hawaii native who moved to Tucson.

Conveniently shielded from the harsh late afternoon sun by a massive vehicle donated by Freedom RV, the Cordero tailgate attracted around 100 folks, some who were family, some who responded to the social media posts and some who simply walked by wearing UH gear and/or leis.

That’s all it took for an invitation to graze through a buffet line of Hawaiian classics such as Spam musubi, Kalua pork, teriyaki chicken, macaroni salad and rice.

“Some people here we don’t know but they’ve got the (Hawaii gear on) so we say, ‘Make a plate,’� David said. “That’s the aloha spirit.�

Home, times two

For the younger David Cordero, playing for Hawaii at ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ Stadium was a return home … while playing for his family’s “homeâ€� team.

While he was born and raised in Tucson, the younger Cordero still has family in the islands. His father said that was one reason he chose to walk on to the Rainbow Warriors instead of taking one of several lower-level offers to play college football out of Salpointe, where he rushed for 585 yards as a senior in 2020.

Cordero took advantage of the opportunity, earning a scholarship and becoming a backup running back and special teams player for Hawaii. He appeared in 10 games last season, rushing for 57 yards on 10 attempts.

David wasn’t the only one that had dual ties tugging at him Saturday. His two older sisters, Angelica and Emily, are UA graduates who showed up at the tailgate wearing T-shirts split down the middle between Hawaii green and ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ red.

“It’s hard not to cheer for both,� Angelica said.

Tucson tough

While dozens of fans huddled up under the shade of mesquite trees to the north of McKale Center during Saturday afternoon’s blazing-hot tailgate, Clint Lapsansky wasn’t about to do such a thing.

Wearing a No. 11 Noah Fifita jersey, the lifelong Tucsonan and aspiring comedian tossed footballs between sections of tailgaters with one hand, while cradling a koozie-wrapped drink in the other.

There was no shade where he threw, and the temperature still sat at about 99 degrees just after 5 p.m., but that didn’t appear to bother him or the other mostly spirited tailgaters along the mall.

“Not at all,� Lapsansky said. “We know what it is.�

Bear Down Bash debuts

While longtime UA fans often reserve the mall’s tailgate spots, anyone was welcome to show up for the first edition of UA’s “Bear Down Bashâ€� on the artificial turf immediately north of ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ Stadium.

A collaboration between UA and the Dusk Music Festival, a downtown music event scheduled for November 15-16, the Bash featured Tucson country music singer Drew Cooper along with video games, corn hole, an inflatable slide, food and a VIP section.

The Bash was the first of 14 such events to be held before select football and basketball games, including Sept. 6 before UA faces Weber State and Sept. 12 before UA hosts Kansas State. One will also be held after the Oct. 3 men’s basketball Red Blue Showcase, featuring Shaquille O’Neal as “DJ Diesel,� Mix Master Mike and UA men’s basketball coach Tommy Lloyd as “DJ Tomm-e.�

Island vibe

While the Bear Down bash included “Drew’s Dogs� and “Kettlelicious� kettle corn, one vendor seemed particularly fitting for a game involving the University of Hawaii.

That was the one called “Lahaina’s Shave Ice,� with the sort of flavors and options you might see in the islands. Flavors included POG (passion-orange-guava), rainbow, strawberry, mango and pineapple while cream or dole whip could be added in.

Corso bids farewell

Longtime ESPN College GameDay panelist Lee Corso made his final appearance on the popular pregame show — and he returned to the site of where his popular mascot headgear bit was created, Ohio Stadium leading up to No. 3 Ohio State’s win over top-ranked Texas.

Corso put on the Brutus Buckeye headgear to announce his prediction of Ohio State winning in 1996. Since then, Corso would end ESPN’s traveling college football pregame show by donning the mascot’s head gear. The 90-year-old Corso bookended his run at College GameDay by picking Ohio State to beat Texas.

Over the years, Corso has made 431 selections — ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ was connected to two of those choices. In 2009, College GameDay came to Tucson for the first time to spotlight ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™s double-overtime loss to Oregon, which was a shootout between UA quarterback Nick Foles and Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli. Corso picked Oregon to win, which earned him a shower of boos from a crowd of mostly ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ fans.

In 2015, leading up to ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™s loss to UCLA, College GameDay had UA alumnus and longtime horse trainer Bob Baffert as a celebrity guest. Sitting next to Baffert, who wore a red UA jersey on the set, Corso said, “I like horses, but I love Cats!â€� And put on Wilbur’s mascot head to end the show.

Corso finished with a 287-144 record. Corso selected Ohio State the most (45) followed by Alabama (38), LSU (25), Florida (22) and Oregon (21).

Recruits in attendance

The ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ hosted around 70 recruits on Saturday, including several commits from their 2026 recruiting class.

Four-star quarterback Oscar Rios, the headliner of ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™s 2026 recruiting class, attended ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™s opener on Saturday, along with defensive lineman Keytrin Harris, linebacker Dash Fifita, offensive tackle Malachi Joyner, safety Hamisi Juma, wide receiver RJ Mosley and offensive lineman Nathan Allen.

A majority of the recruits in attendance were in-state players in the 2026-28 recruiting cycles, including 2027 Chandler Hamilton defensive back Kingston Spivey, the younger brother of ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ receiver Tre Spivey.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ also hosted ‘27 cornerback Jalani Culpepper, a Georgetown, Texas, native with offers from Florida State, Texas Tech, Colorado, Louisville, Maryland, Mississippi State, Houston, Indiana and SMU; and rising sophomore and 2028 receiver Jaiden “Nunuâ€� Jones, a 5-11, 150-pound North Fort Meyers, Florida native. The ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ currently have a “Nunuâ€� on the roster in Chattanooga transfer Javin Whatley.

On that Grindz

Overhauling the west side of ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ Stadium remains a long-term project. In the meantime, the UA is trying to make the best of the space beneath the stands.

New food offerings are available in an area that’s being called “Food Truck Alley.� The most notable addition is Solid Grindz Hawaiian BBQ.

The yellow and orange food truck features a variety of Hawaiian favorites, including kalbi beef short ribs, kalua pulled pork nachos and katsu chicken.

On Saturday, the Solid Grindz truck was adorned with a “Polynesian Pipelineâ€� poster depicting all of ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™s current Polynesian players and coaches.

What else can be found in Food Truck Alley?

– A UA merch pop-up shop

– A stand selling kettle corn and agua frescas

– A self-serve beer, beverage and snack market

– A Sir Veza’s food truck

– A Chick-fil-A tent

– The Coors Light patio

Volunteers appreciated

If you’ve ever been to a UA football game, you’ve undoubtedly seen the “How May I Help You?� volunteers. Their job on gamedays is exactly as it’s described.

The volunteers come from across the athletic department. They held a training session Wednesday. UA coach Brent Brennan heard about it and left practice to greet them and thank them.

“He just went down there ... and told everybody how much it (meant),� UA athletic director Desireé Reed-Francois said. “He’s like, ‘I can’t believe you all do this for us. I just want you to know this makes a huge difference, because the fan experience is so critical.’ �

Picture this

About 45 minutes before kickoff, a tall young man wearing a No. 1 football jersey made his way toward the stadium down Cherry Avenue. He couldn’t make it five steps without being stopped by fans for a picture.

The young man was former UA basketball player Carter Bryant, who played for the ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ last season before turning pro. Bryant was picked in the first round of the NBA Draft by the San Antonio Spurs.

Bryant cheerily accommodated every fan who asked for a selfie.

Scout presence

NFL scouts attended UA practices throughout training camp. Six teams requested credentials for Saturday’s game: Buffalo, Indianapolis, Las Vegas, New England, Tampa Bay and Washington.

Additionally, a representative from the East-West Shrine Bowl was listed as a press-box attendee. Former ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt was the Offensive MVP of last year’s East-West Shrine Bowl before being drafted by Washington in the seventh round and making the Commanders’ 53-man roster.

By the numbers

288: Days since ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™s last win. The ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™ last victory was against the Houston Cougars on Nov. 15, the third-to-last game of the season.

3: Number of Tucson restaurants TNT color analyst Mike Golic Jr. tried. Golic, a former Notre Dame offensive lineman, is popular on social media for reviewing foods in his car. Golic had breakfast at Baja Cafe and said the snickerdoodle pancake was “strong� and a “game-changer.� Golic also had pizza at Anello and dinner at Charro Steak & Del Rey.